


Hold my hand like you mean it

by Tdtori



Category: Daredevil (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Slow burn/Slow build
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-15
Updated: 2015-05-15
Packaged: 2018-03-23 03:25:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 17,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3752689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tdtori/pseuds/Tdtori
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Claire needs her mom to believe she has a boyfriend. She enlists Matt to be just that. And then things get complicated.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

“I’m going to ask you something and you have to take it seriously.” Was the first thing Claire had said to him since he stumbled into her apartment after a particularly brutal night. A ring of sex traffickers who also seemed to be very skilled in judo. And knives.

Matt smiled, tipping his head as if he would be looking at her. “You don’t seem very happy about it yourself.” He can hear her heartbeat and it says that she’s nervous, which makes him wonder what exactly it could be.

She groaned and finished the last stitch before getting up, pacing around the room. It was ridiculous that she was desperate to sink this low. “It’s not…that big of a deal. So, don’t feel like you have to say yes or something.”

“You’re rambling.” His smile widened, cheeks almost touching the rim of his glasses. 

It was stupid and she almost wanted to say forget about it, but Claire knew that Matt probably wouldn’t drop it. Especially since he just had those weird ideas about what she was feeling. That would be something that she would have to get used to. “Okay, well…my mother has been bugging me about finding a boyfriend. So, I told her I had one…” Claire paused and laughed at herself. It sounded crazier. “When I clearly don’t, so if you could pretend to be my boyfriend for one dinner?”

That definitely wasn’t what Matt was expecting and his smile exchanged for furrowed eyebrows. “Pretend to be your boyfriend?” It wasn’t that he didn’t want to. Pretend that is. “I mean…didn’t we decide it was better if we just stuck to you healing me?”

Claire sighed and sat back down in front of him. “But it’s pretend. We aren’t actually going to be dating. And what my mother doesn’t know won’t hurt her. I’ll repay you with not turning you away when it’s two in the morning after working a double shift.”

“Very funny.” Matt deadpanned, but he knew she wasn’t serious. He would’ve been able to tell. It really wasn’t that hard of a decision, because how hard could it be? “I just…don’t want this to turn into something more.” It could easily, they both had been holding back, biting their tongues and keeping their hands where they were suppose to be.

She understood where he was coming from, it was probably why it took so long for her to even bring it up, but she’d rather have it be him. Mostly because it feels like a small part of her trusts a small part of him. “It’s one dinner. Then we can go back to just meeting when you’re dying.”

Matt thought about it, really thought about it. Weighed the cons and the pros, went through different scenarios before finally coming to an answer. “One dinner.” 

Soon Claire wrapped her arms around his neck, grinning widely and Matt could tell that she was definitely more relaxed than she had been a few minutes ago. “Thank you so much, Matt. I promise it won’t be too painful.” 

\------

It was early in the morning and Karen had brought in coffee, because the maker in their office still sucked and none of them could handle drinking that shit anymore. She, Foggy, and Matt all sat at the conference table looking over a file for a case they were suppose to be taking, when it was Matt who finally broke the silence.

“You guys remember that girl, uh…Claire I told you about?” Foggy knew more about her than Karen did, Karen just thought that she was some girl who he may or may not have had sex with. 

They all nodded, their attention suddenly all on Matt excited to see where this was going. 

Matt cleared his throat and it was weird, because it wasn’t usual for him to be nervous to talk about these sort of things. “Well, apparently she told her mom that she has a boyfriend, so now I’m going to…pretend to be her boyfriend.” Saying it out loud made it sound weird. Pretending to be a boyfriend…

There was just silence as Foggy and Karen shared a knowing look. “Guys, your silence isn’t very comforting.” 

“It’s just that…pretending to date is a little silly. I mean, it’s nice of you to be her fake-boyfriend.” Karen said, smiling a bit before taking a drink of her coffee, hoping that Foggy said something a bit more comforting.

“That’s…that’s great dude. I mean, you like her don’t you? Maybe this will open the door a little bit and she’ll realize she likes you too. I mean, she obviously asked you and not some other guy she knows for a reason, right?” 

Truthfully, Matt hadn’t even thought about that even though they both knew they liked one another. But he wasn’t going to get his hopes up, because Claire was great and he wasn’t going to lose his friend and his nurse. “Foggy, I’m not going to make a move on her. Claire stated we were going to pretend and until she tells me differently I’m going by that.” It was a very detached answer.

Foggy made a face and went back to the file. “Whatever, dude. I’m just tryin’ to look at this from a different angle.” Matt wasn’t sure what kind of angle he meant.  
\----

“Momma?” Claire whispered, she was still at work but in the break room which is where there were a lot of nurses drinking coffee trying to stay awake during impossibly long shifts. “It’s Claire.” Her mother was still fairly young at fifty-five, but with both of her other children either married or getting ready to be married it explained why she wanted to see her only daughter get married so much. It was nice that she cared even if it was mostly annoying.

“Aren’t you at work right now?” Her mother was awake, but at this hour she was probably getting ready for bed and Claire interrupted her. 

“Yes, I am at work right now, but I wanted to let you know that I talked to….my boyfriend and he’d love to come to dinner on Saturday.” How weird that was for her to say. ‘Boyfriend’. Of course she had boyfriends before, but only a of them were serious. And Claire usually ended up finding out that they were actually kind of shitty men, which caused her to break-up with them. At least her pretend boyfriend seemed good for the most part.

Claire could practically see her mom’s face light up as she told her the news. “Oh, Claire, that’s great. I can’t wait to meet him…I’ll make those pot pies you like so much.”

It was great hearing her mom so happy that it made her a little sad that she was lying to her, but hopefully once she met the boyfriend her mom would just ask Claire about him and it would be easier. Especially since she wasn’t sure if Matt would want to keep going over for dinner. 

\---

“I told my mom and we’re having dinner with her…and probably my brothers on Saturday.” She said it almost under her breath - as if she didn’t want him to hear, but that was impossible with Matt – while she put a bandage over a spot on his side that was bleeding. “It’ll be nice to see you not covered in blood.” 

Matt raised an eyebrow, questioning. “Are you saying you don’t enjoy this?” By that he meant her seeing him shirtless, as if she hadn’t mentioned it a thousand times before. 

“No, of course not, but I don’t think my mother would. It’d probably give her a damn heart attack. ” Claire smiled and put one of her hands on his cheek. “Thank you again for doing this. It…it’s asking for a lot, but-“

He cut her off, shaking his head as he took his glasses off since it always gave off the look as if he really was looking at her. “Claire, you’ve patched me up more times than I can count, I’m pretty sure this is the least I could do. I’m also getting a free meal out of this, which is always great.” Matt shrugged with a grin and Claire just rolled her eyes. 

“I should get going, Murdock. If you don’t need me again I’ll see you Saturday. Wear a suit.” Claire gathered her stuff and took one last look at him. Yeah, she’d never get used to seeing him shirtless.

It was Matt’s turn to stand up even though he didn’t really need to. They were at his place. “I’ll see you on Saturday if I manage to stay out of trouble.”

Claire shook her head. “More like if you manage to actually fight well.” It was the last word in the conversation. 

Part of him was excited to meet Claire’s family, but most of him was anxious. What if it didn’t go well? What if her mom wanted to see him again? Matt yawned and decided to leave the worrying for Saturday, right now he just needed sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

The rest of the week was not as uneventful as Matt would’ve liked, especially since he didn’t want to show up to dinner covered in angry red lines. But it wasn’t as bad as it had been before, a few robberies and a few petty crime type things. Nothing bad enough to have Claire patch him back up. Which was both good and bad.

It was Thursday night and he was eating take-out with Foggy and Karen with Foggy wanting to know about his fake-date on Saturday.

“It isn’t real, Foggy, you realize that right?” He was pretty sure Foggy didn’t care since he was always interested when Matt had a girl or when he thought Matt had a girl.

“Oh, don’t tell him that, Matt. Let him have a little bit of fun.” Karen teased which earned her a look from Foggy. 

That was when Matt’s burner phone went off. “Uh, I’m eating with Karen and Foggy right now…is everything okay?” Karen and Foggy shared a look before watching Matt, trying to pick up bits and pieces of the conversation. “I figured it was formal. I’m not an animal, Claire.” Him saying her name was enough to light up Foggy and Karen’s faces. “Alright, 7pm, I’ll see you then.”

Foggy was the first to speak, his excitement boiling over. “Dude! Okay, you have to tell us a little bit about her.”

It wasn’t that Matt wanted to keep Claire a complete secret, but it was better for her. For them. To keep it that way. “Uh, well…she’s a nurse.” 

Both of them just rolled their eyes, when Matt wanted to keep a secret there wasn’t anything that was going to stop him. Foggy knew that for sure.

“She’s…you guys would like her. She’s funny and doesn’t put up with my shit. Which is definitely something that happens often.” Matt looked over in Foggy’s general direction, which just caused him to look away. “I’ll tell you guys how it goes.”

\----

It was almost seven on the dot when Claire knocked on his door that Saturday night. He had gone on dates before, but this was definitely the first time he was actually nervous and it wasn’t even a real date. 

“Hi.” She said, smiling before stepping into his apartment. “You look nice.” 

He was wearing one of the suits that he would usually wear to court. Tailored pants, white button down, a vest and a tie. Matt grabbed his suit jacket before putting the apartment key in his apartment. “I would tell you the same, but…” Which earned him an unamused look. “I’m sure you do look nice.” He held onto her arm as she led them to her car. “What should I expect from them? Your family I mean.”

Claire sighed, not sure where to begin. “Well, my mother will probably joke a lot about me being single. She’ll also be very charmed by you. Don’t look at me like that, you can be charming when you want to be. Then I have two brothers. There’s Samuel, who is engaged and the youngest. He’ll stay quiet most of the time. And then Benjamin who is a little bit older than me. He’s married and has two kids. The wife and kids shouldn’t be there. They’ll all be respectful. No jokes about…y’know.” He did, but no one ever made fun of him for it.

It sounded nice to Matt. Much more put together and…normal than he and his dad ever were. There was also the fact that most of her family was alive. “They sound nice. Normal.”

That made Claire laugh. “Please. You should see us at Christmas. Even though were all grown-up we still make a big deal out of it. It’s actually pretty funny. Also, there’s the fact we aren’t actually together, so there’s nothing to actually worry about it.”

“I know, but I want to make it believable. I want your mom to believe that you actually have a boyfriend.” Matt shrugged and got into the passenger side, fumbling with the seatbelt before leaning into the seat. 

She nodded, she wanted her mom to believe it as well. There were only so many dinners Claire could endure where her mom asked her if she had a boyfriend or not. “Me too.” 

There wasn’t a lot of conversation on the way to her mom’s house. Claire did talk about how her mom had lived there forever and that it was just a little bit outside of the city. Also talked about how when Claire was 22 her dad died from brain cancer, but didn’t go into too much detail. “We’re here.” She announced as the car was put into park before going to help Matt, who hadn’t brought his walking stick. “I’ll tell you when to step.”

His hand gripped her arm as they stood in front of the door and then he heard a woman’s voice, something about getting the potatoes out of the oven. 

“Claire, so glad that you and Matt were able to come. They work you far too much at that hospital.” And then Matt could tell that her mom was now looking at him. “Matt, Claire hasn’t actually told us much about you. She keeps far too many secrets.” It took all of his will to not start laughing.

“Ah, it’s nice to meet you finally. I’ve been bugging Claire about wanting to meet her family.” If he was going to pretend to be her boyfriend then he was going to milk it. “Did…Claire forget to tell you I’m blind?” Matt finally said after a pregnant pause.

Then came another pause. “Claire Temple, did you really not tell your own mother that your boyfriend was blind? No, she didn’t.” It really wasn’t that big of deal, but he could her Claire’s heart rate already starting to pick up.

Matt just laughed and shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Like you said, she keeps far too many secrets.” 

Claire helped him inside where she then led him into the kitchen where he met her two brothers. They laughed at the fact that Claire had kept that very important detail from everyone. “I just never thought to mention it. I mean, it really isn’t that big of a deal.” And then she smiled at him and put her hand over the one of his that was on her arm.

“Now, Matt, do you use cane to help get around?” It wasn’t a surprise to him that her mom asked about his blindness. People were usually very interested in it and he was fine with talking about it.

He found a chair to sit in and nodded his head. “Sometimes. If I’m going to work or if I’m just walking around the city. If I’m just in my apartment or at the voice then I don’t really need one. I know my way around those places better than someone who can see.”

Suddenly Claire’s family was even more interested he could tell by a couple new heartbeats coming into the kitchen. “Really? What do you mean by that?” One of her brothers, Benjamin, asked.

Matt thought about how to word his answer. Most people didn’t understand how his heightened senses worked. “Because I’m blind my other four senses are heightened. My hearing is actually impeccable.” He could practically see the grin that Claire was holding back.

Once he mentioned work her brother Samuel asked what he did and Matt could tell by his tone that he was probably curious on what exactly a blind man could do for a job. Which was ironic considering how much of an advantage his blindness was in a courtroom. 

“Well, I’m actually a lawyer,” cue the impressed noises. “and one of my friends from college and I just started our own a firm not too long ago.” 

Then it was time for dinner and Claire sat next to him on one side and her brother Benjamin on the other. 

Her mom finally asked the question that her family was dying to know. “How did you two even meet? Don’t seem like very likely paths to cross to me…”

Matt decided to take this one. “Well, I had actually gotten hurt by…a car hitting me and Claire took care of me when I went to the hospital. It wasn’t very bad, don’t worry. She was…incredibly kind and caring. Even for a nurse. Then we kept kind of…running into each other.” He could tell that Claire was trying not to laugh at his story. Thank God they couldn’t tell when he was lying.

“Why’d you just now decide to date one of your patients, C?” It was Samuel who spoke and again Matt could tell her heart rate was increasing; he put one of his hands on her thigh, trying to let her know that it was okay.

Claire just smiled politely. “Because we kept running into each other, outside of the hospital. We would…go get coffee and it just seemed like something clicked.” Matt nodded and tried to find her left hand before she had to help him to thread their fingers together, so he could give it a squeeze. 

“What about your family, Matt? What do they do?” He should’ve seen that one coming really, but it didn’t make it any less uncomfortable when it was actually said.

There was a pause, Matt trying to decide to lie or to just tell them the truth. “Uh, well…my mother left when I was very young. I never knew her. My father was killed when I was about fifteen. Then I was placed in an orphanage.” There was a long silence. “It’s okay. It happened quite a while ago.” Then he could feel them relax.

Claire’s mother then asked him why he wanted to become a lawyer.

“I think it’s because I’ve just always wanted to help people. I got blinded pushing this old man out the way of this truck that had chemicals on it. I would patch my dad up after boxing fights-“

“Woah, your dad boxed? What’s his name?” It was Samuel who was interested.

Claire laughed, feeling more relaxed as she gave Matt’s hand a squeeze. “Samuel used to box and is still pretty into it. He was never any good.” 

“Jonathan Murdock. Battlin’ Jack Murdock.” There was a little bit of pride for his dad. “The last fight he fought he won by a lot.” Matt smiled.

The conversation floated back around to Claire and to teasing her about not finding a boyfriend for a while. “She once dated a pastor, can you believe that? There was also the time where she dated a director of a funeral home.” Her mom laughed while Claire’s heart rate started to spike back up again. 

“I’m sure Matt doesn’t want to hear about all the different men I’ve dated, momma.” Was all she mumbled before Matt squeezed her hand. It was both a comfort thing and to let her know that he could tell her heart rate was changing. “None of those men matter now, right?” She looked at Matt with a smile that said everything was perfect.

\---

It was late when Claire finally brought him back to his apartment and they both were exhausted. 

Claire leaned up against the door frame trying not to rub her eyes. “Thank you again. It really meant a lot.”

He had already taken off his glasses and gave her a small smile. “Of course, Claire. Go get some sleep I don’t want to be the reason you aren’t sleeping.”

All she could do was snort. “You already are, genius.” 

\---

It was few days later when Matt showed up at Claire’s place beaten and burned and already making his way to the couch for her to fix him up. “I…Fuck, I’m a dumbass.”

Claire grabbed her kit and put on the latex glove, sitting beside him to examine what exactly was wrong. “What’d you do this time?” She sprayed some anti-bacteria stuff and he flinched.

“Just going after the guys I did. Ending up with burns.” They had flares and flames and most of it he could dodge, but there was only so much he could do.

It was thirty minutes of them just sitting in silence, Matt knew Claire liked the silence to work, before she finally spoke. “I have…a favor to ask of you.”

Matt just looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

“I need you to be my boyfriend again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, the overwhelming amount of love made me write this chapter incredibly quickly. Thank you for all the kudos and comments, they mean /so/ much to me!   
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter because the next is going to be angst!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claire and Matt go to her brother's wedding. Matt makes a confession afterwards.

It was a few weeks later and Matt was wearing his Sunday best (also known as courtroom best), sitting next to Claire in a church. One of her hands wrapped around his upper-arm as her younger brother got married. Claire had already told her family that she was bringing Matt, who they all decided was her best boyfriend so far, and well how was he suppose to back out of that? 

\---

When he had told Foggy and Karen they were apprehensive about it. It was Foggy (surprise) who figured out what was happening. “Dude,” they were at Josie’s on a mild Wednesday night after the office. “I know that you definitely really like her.” 

Matt shouldn’t have been so surprised when Foggy told him, they had been best friends for years, had lived together and worked together. It was no surprise that he knew when Matt really liked a woman. But still he was. “I can’t, Foggy.” Even though Foggy knew more about the situation, that definitely didn’t mean that he knew everything.

“What the hell do you mean you can’t?” Foggy raised an eyebrow, not amused by Matt’s answer.

At first Matt wanted to lie, but he wasn’t sure that he could deal lying to Foggy about it. One because it wasn’t that big of a deal. And two because it would make him feel bad. “Because she told me that she doesn’t want to get involved…with me and what I do. Which makes sense, I don’t many woman who would, but that also means I can’t like her since we can’t…happen.” He sighed and took a drink, almost wanting to get drunk so he wouldn’t have to think about it.

“Rough dude.” Foggy said before clapping his shoulder. “You’ll find someone who’ll want to be with you…both of you.”

“Starting to think that person might be you.” Matt said before laughing. It almost felt like old times. 

\---

The wedding was huge. Family and friend’s on both sides of the family came and almost all of them – at least what felt like almost all of them – were interested in him and Claire. All of them all trying not ask him about his blindness, he could tell some of them were nervous as if they’d say something wrong. 

The reception was actually really fun if Matt was being honest with himself. There was a ton of food, a free bar, and a giant dance floor with a DJ. “Oh, you have to dance with me, Matthew.” Claire had already grabbed his hand to lead him to the dance floor.

It took him a moment to process it over the noise. “I don’t remember signing up for that when I agreed to be your date.” There was also the fact that he had no idea how to dance.

Claire rolled her eyes, still leading him to the floor, putting her arms around his neck. “It was in the fine print. You’d think that as a lawyer you’d read it.”

His hands found her waist and suddenly he was filled with fear over the fact he had no idea what he was doing. “I didn’t think that you’d actually use it to get me to do something like this.” 

“Dance? Dance is nothing to be scared of, Matt.” She laughed and assumed taking the lead.

“I’m blind, Claire.” He deadpanned and his hands tightened a bit on her waist. “Do you think anyone ever taught me to dance?”

Claire shook her head. “You can become a vigilante and take down crime, but you can’t dance? Don’t worry, no one is going to be staring at you.”

They weren’t really dancing though, unless you count just lightly moving in a small circle, but still Matt enjoyed it. He could practically see Claire’s smile as she kept teasing him about not knowing how to dance. They moved off the floor when a faster song would happen and just sit and drink – Claire not so much since she was the designated driver by default. 

“Can I take your guys’ picture?” An unfamiliar voice said to them. “I’m the photographer and you guys just make the best couple.”

Matt looked over at Claire, before shrugging. “Yes, you can.” They decided not to look at the camera since Matt would never get his head just perfect, so they just went back to acting like they were dancing, even continuing to do so after the photographer left. “Apparently we make the best couple.”

Claire laughed and put her head down on his shoulder. “Apparently we do.”

\---

“What time is it?” He asked when they finally got to his apartment, immediately taking off his shoes, jacket and tie. By what he could tell Claire sat down on the couch.

“About one in the morning.” She said groggily. 

It was late and Foggy and Karen were expecting him at the office tomorrow. They would understand if he showed up late. Matt sat down on the couch beside her, his head resting on the back of it. “Claire…” His hand reaching for one of hers.

“We’re done pretending, Matt. I think you may have had a little bit too much to drink.” Claire smiled, but still took his hand, giving it a small squeeze. “Thanks again. I’ll make sure to write up a contract for next time.”

Matt laughed and shook his head. “I’m not pretending anymore, Claire. I mean…I never really was either.” 

She let go of his hand, moving so that she was sitting sideways on the couch to face him. “What do you mean you weren’t really pretending?” 

Part of him knew that he should stop talking, that if he said anymore then he would get in hot water. The other part knew that he had to be honest with Claire, that she deserved to know. “Are you surprised? Claire, I really like you. Clearly, I was pretending to be your boyfriend, but the emotion behind it was real.” 

If he could’ve seen Claire’s face he would’ve seen her frown. “I wish I could say the same, Matt. You know how I feel. You know that I can’t get involved with you.”

He knew that, but he still had to ask. “Why?” Maybe her answer was different this time.

“You being Daredevil? It’s too much. I can’t be worried about you constantly. I can’t wonder if you’re going to come home or not. I’ll patch you up, but that’s it. I have to draw the line there. Even us pretending was almost too much to me.” He could hear the sadness in her voice. If he wasn’t Daredevil then maybe they would have a chance, but he wasn’t going to stop. They both knew that. 

It was so cruel that he had been her fake boyfriend twice and now that he knew what that could actually be like all chances of that happening were ripped away. Still, he respected her decision of not wanting to get too involved. “I know and I get that, but god I wish we could’ve had a chance.”

“You know that if we had a chance I would take it and that we’d be together.” Claire admitted, laughing a bit. Only that hurt even more, knowing that they’d be so good together, but they just couldn’t be.

Matt nodded and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. “We would’ve been good. I mean, I understand we can’t no matter what. Even if I stopped being daredevil, because I’ve already made powerful enemies. You’d be in danger.” He understood, he did, but that doesn’t mean he has to like it.

Claire gave his hand a squeeze as if she was trying to comfort him. “Matt, you’re going to find someone who loves both lawyer you and Daredevil you. It might take a while, but it’ll happen.” With that she stood up and left.

\---

It was late again only this time he had been up fighting crime, not dancing with a girl who was not his girlfriend. Matt was also pretty sure that he had a concussion when he found himself at Claire’s door. He hadn’t been there in a while, mostly because he just couldn’t see her after their conversation. But tonight he did need to be patched up and just hear her voice, then he’d be gone. 

When he knocked on the door it wasn’t Claire who answered, it was a man. Matt figured it out before he had even opened the door. Now he was in the stairwell, focusing on trying to hear who it was. 

“Mike?” It was Claire’s voice. “Who is it?”

There was a pause before Mike had closed the door. “Probably just some kid thinking he’s funny.”

“Come back to bed.” She called to him and that’s when he stopped. 

Half of him was happy for her, but the other part of him hurt and it wasn’t the concussion. They weren’t together, she could sleep with whoever she wanted to. That wasn’t what pained him. It was the fact that she wasn’t attached at all and he wished that he could do the same.

Matt wanted to move on, he didn’t want to be hung up on someone that he couldn’t be with. “Get over it, Murdock. At least she’s happy.” He mumbled to himself as he left her apartment complex to head to his own apartment.

When he got back home he laid face up in his bed, not even changing out of his Daredevil uniform, he was exhausted. Matt almost called Foggy to tell him what happened, but when he asked his phone what time it was and the female voice told him almost three in the morning he decided against it. 

Finally he took off his uniform and took a shower, washing the blood off of himself before changing into a pair of sweatpants and laying back down in bed.

At least she was happy, he thought once more before falling asleep. Which was a lot more than what Matt could say for himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say thank you for the overwhelming amount of support this fic has received. It's more than I thought it would get. So thank you for reading, commenting, bookmarking and kudoing!!  
> Also if you want to find me on tumblr it's at amyellliotdunne.  
> Another also here is my Matt/Claire 8tracks fanmix I made: https://8tracks.com/tdtori/sound-of-your-voice


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt tells Claire he knows about Mike and tries to move on.

Foggy could tell that something was wrong when they were at the office the next day. Something that was more than just Claire knowing how Matt felt, it went beyond that. Really it shouldn’t surprise Matt that Foggy could pick up on these sort of things, because they had been friends for years, but it still did. 

It was lunch and Karen was going to pick some Thai up from a local place they all discovered. With Karen gone it was when Foggy decided to talk about why Matt was in a mood.

“I’m not in a mood, Foggy. I didn’t sleep well and I have a five inch gash on chest.” They had started getting more clients, nothing compared to what they would’ve been getting at Landman and Zach’s, but it was better. 

If Matt could’ve seen him then he would’ve seen that Foggy was giving him a look that said I don’t believe you. “Matt, I’d appreciate if you stopped lying to me, because I’m pretty sure we’ve been over this before.” 

Matt sighed and nodded his head. “It’s Claire…” He paused and listened to Foggy’s heartbeat – also to see if he’d say anything. He didn’t. “After the wedding I told her how I really felt. She doesn’t feel the same way. Then last night I went to her apartment to have her patch me up when I heard a man’s voice. She got back together with her ex.”

Foggy clapped his shoulder and Matt turned to look over at him. “Remember what I told you at Josie’s? I said that one day you’ll meet someone who likes both you and Daredevil.”

“I remember. I also remember saying that I’m pretty sure that person’s you.” They both laughed, but at this rate Matt was pretty sure that there wasn’t anyone who would like both him and Daredevil. “Thanks, Foggy.”

\---

He had to be patched up there was no other choice now. If Claire wasn’t there or Mike was then he would definitely bleed out. Matt pulled out his burner, deciding to call this time instead of going to her apartment first. To his luck she was there. Alone.

A few minutes later he was climbing through her window and laying on that same damn couch. He had grown the love the lumpy thing. “Thank you.” He muttered as he started to take off the suit. There was an awkwardness there between them, now that almost everything was out in the open.

“Yeah, well, decided that it wasn’t your time to die.” She put on the latex gloves and got out the stuff needed to stitch up some wounds.

“Didn’t realize you were the one I had been praying to all these years.” Matt said with a lopsided grin. Even Claire had to crack a smile at that one.

Most of the time they would crack jokes or make small talk, but tonight Claire worked in silence. It made things feel worse though. It felt like either of them were about to crack. Matt wasn’t sure if he even wanted to bring up the fact that he knew that she was at the very least sleeping with someone. It wasn’t his business and it would just make things worse. “You know, don’t you?” Claire finally said as she placed a band-aid over one of his other gashes.

Matt thought that he could read people well, but he had nothing on Claire Temple. “If you’re talking about Mike then yes.” He heard her sigh and sit down on the floor. “I was the one who knocked on your door the other night. Realized a man was in here and left.” 

Then she left for the kitchen and he could smell coffee, he hadn’t even asked her for any. Maybe this was a conversation that she couldn’t have without having a little bit more energy. “We aren’t back together, but we’re…something, I guess. Not that you need to know.” She said from the kitchen.

He started to sit up, grabbing at his side and making a low moan as he did so. “No, I don’t need to know. Claire, I am sorry about a couple weeks ago. I shouldn’t have told you. We would’ve been better off otherwise.”

A few minutes later she brought him a mug of coffee, black. “I think it did open a conversation we need to have though. We just…it’s never going to work between us, Matt. You’re a great guy, funny, smart, and yeah I’ll admit hot. But we can’t cross the line of friends. I can’t at least.”

The coffee was scalding hot and burnt his tongue, but he needed a moment to think about what he was going say. “I’m happy that you’re at least seeing someone. I will try to do the same, but dating is a little difficult and not just because of the blindness.” 

Claire sat down beside him and took his free hand “You’ll find someone, but that someone can’t be me. I wish it could, but…”

Matt nodded, he understood, he didn’t need her to explain it fifty different ways on way they could never be a couple. “Thank you again, Claire. I’ll get going.” Of course he had to finish his coffee first.

\---

“I don’t think this what they meant when they call it a blind date, Foggy.” Matt said as the friend led him towards the bar where he would meet this girl that Foggy set him up with. Apparently she was a prosecutor which would definitely make things interesting. 

They weren’t meeting at Josie’s because a dive bar wasn’t really a place to meet a girl. “Very funny. Don’t remember Alice? She was an intern and Landman’s when we were, she still works there oddly enough.”

The date wasn’t horrible. Alice was nice and funny, even if she came off a little strong. She was talkative, which was nice because Matt had no idea what to even talk about. It wasn’t until towards the end when she made him raise his eyebrows. “There’s someone else, isn’t there?”

The question took him by surprise. “I…I don’t know what you mean.” 

She thought that was funny and shot back the rest of her beer. “I mean, there’s someone else you’re interested in, isn’t there? And don’t look so surprised, I’m a prosecutor for God’s sake.” 

Matt shook his head. “No, there’s no one else. I’m just...kind of going through a hard time right now.” 

“Which is code for there’s someone else. Listen, I don’t care. I had a good time, but I’m not who you’re interested in. That’s who you need to be with. Not some prosecutor who could kick your ass in court.” 

With that she got up and left and Foggy took her place. “So, how’d it go?”

For a moment Matt had no idea what just happened. “I…she said that I need to be with the person I’m actually interested in, because it wasn’t her. Am I really that transparent?”

Foggy stood up and helped Matt get to his feet. “Just a little, dude. I mean, especially when it comes to Claire. I can read exactly what you’re thinking. Man, too bad about her though. I know you really like her.”

As he took Matt back to his apartment, he thought about what Claire said. What Alice said. What he wanted more than anything was to be with Claire, she accepted both parts of him like no one else had. She had known before even Foggy had. “Foggy, how do you get over someone that you never dated?”

It was like Foggy was reliving every moment where he had to get over a girl that he never actually dated. “You just…have to accept that there happier without you. And then you have to find someone that makes you happier.” 

That would be easier said then done.

\---

“Someone’s calling you.” Alice said, shaking him a bit before sitting up in his bed with the covers around her. Matt hadn’t planned on sleeping with her, but one night they went out to the same bar and both of them were tipsy and he had asked her to stay the night. It was actually pretty nice.

Matt finally came to his senses and realized that it was his burner phone that was the one going off. Considering it was morning he knew that something must have gone wrong. “Hello?” He said his voice still filled with sleep.

“Matt? Did you come over last night?” There was worry in Claire’s voice and it was something that unsettled Matt.

He sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes with one hand while his other held the phone up to his ear. “No, I was…out last night. Is everything okay?”

A long pause. “Oh my god. Someone broke into my apartment last night. I didn’t get home until about five in the morning and I just…I thought that it was probably you and didn’t do anything.”

There was someone or multiple someone’s out there looking for Claire, Matt was certain of that. They wanted Claire and he was willing to bet it was because they knew that they were close. “Do you need me to come over?”

By this point Alice was getting dressed, looking over at him every so often as if she was trying to figure out who he was talking to.

Claire sounded like she was crying and Matt felt sick to his stomach. This was because of him. “No, no, you probably have to go into the office. I’ll be fine. I’ll have Mike stay over for a while until I figure something out.” 

He couldn’t be close to Claire without being worried about her. It was the second time that he realized that. “Claire, this is my fault. I won’t come over for a while. Hopefully that’ll make them back off.”

“Does that mean you’re actually not going to get your ass kicked and need my help?” She was amused by the fact that he would even suggest staying away. “I could always go over there and you can just give me a call?”

Then Alice decided that was the perfect time to speak. “I’ll give you a call later, okay?” Matt just looked up with a smile and nodded as she left.

“Didn’t realize you had someone over, Matt. We’ll just talk later.” Before Matt could say anything she hung up. 

At least they both knew what it was like to be in the other’s position now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still amazed with all the love this fic has been receiving, it makes me write the next chapters that much faster!   
> I'm taking a hiatus on tumblr, but I'm still going to update the fic regularly!  
> Thank you again for the love <3


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claire and Matt come to a decision.

“You just need to call her back, Matt.” Karen said sympathetically over pad thai, their lunch a couple days later, who was much better at relationship advice than Foggy was. Not that Matt didn’t talk to him what was going on, but his advice wasn’t always the best. Then again all the advice in the world probably wouldn’t help him in this situation. 

Claire and Matt hadn’t had any communication since that morning when Matt had Alice over. He also hadn’t had Alice over since then. Daredevil also hadn’t made an appearance since then, mostly because he wasn’t sure he could count on Claire to patch him up. The part was because Mike could be over since the break-in happened. God, he really needed to call just to make sure that everything was okay. 

It was funny that Foggy always said that he got the girls when he sucked at relationships. Hell, Claire and him weren’t even in a relationship before. 

“You’re right, Karen, I do.” He mumbled as he managed to get some noodles on his chopsticks. “I just don’t want to. Things were kind of…awkward when we left off.” 

For some reason that peaked Foggy’s interest. “What happened?”

Karen placed a hand on Foggy’s shoulder. “Were you not just listening to the past ten minutes? Claire called him last night while he had a woman over and Claire hung up on him.”

“Sorry, once I get food I kind of just block everything out for a little bit. Well, that obviously means that she’s interested in you, because she was jealous.” Foggy shrugged before going back to his own lunch.

Matt had to admit that Foggy did have a point, but that didn’t really matter since Claire said she couldn’t be with him. Which he understood and even kind of supported. A relationship with her would be tough and dangerous; the last thing he wanted was to place Claire in more danger. “It isn’t quite that simple considering she already told me she doesn’t want a relationship with me. Which I support.” 

Of course he had forgotten that Karen didn’t know that he was the vigilante known as Daredevil. “Wait, you support not getting into a relationship with Claire? How come?”

He was mentally kicking himself and hoping that Foggy was still not paying attention so he wouldn’t give anything away. “I just don’t think she wants to get into a serious relationship right now. Her hours at the hospital are kind of all over the place.” Apparently it was a good enough lie because Karen didn’t push the subject anymore. Neither of them did. They all just quietly accepted that Matt would have to figure this one out for himself.

\---

It was stupid to go after escaped criminals, especially ones that the news were calling “armed and dangerous”, but he was dangerous too. Between the two of the criminals he managed to get one unconscious and the other one was a little tougher. A little older and a little bigger. Managed to crack at least 3 of Matt’s ribs and give him a face full of glass. 

Which was how he found himself at Claire’s window early in the morning muttering “Please be alone, please be alone” to himself. Luckily she was and she opened the window for him to find his place on her couch. “Thank God.”

Claire closed the window behind him and went to grab her kit. “Thought you Catholics weren’t suppose to take the Lord’s name in vain?”

He gave her a shit eating grin. “I really was thanking God right there. You just missed me praying.” The familiar smell of latex gloves wafting in the air. It was almost comforting.

At first she was silent, taking off his suit to try and find where all his injuries were. “You praying for me?” Claire finally said, incredulous that Matt would actually do so.

“Medical care.” He said simply, because how was she suppose to understand that when he went to church all he could think of was her? That it was her name he said right after God’s. Once she had finished and taken off her gloves she sighed. “You’re going to say something.” He had figured out how to tell with her even if it had taken some time.

“I was just going to ask you who the girl was.” It was the fact she said it so nonchalantly that hurt him more than any glass or guns could do. Matt heard her get up, head for the kitchen for what he at first thought would be coffee, instead he heard the opening of a beer bottle. “Is it serious?”

Matt laughed before flinching in pain. “No, it isn’t…wasn’t serious. We went out a few times and I took her home. She’s a prosecutor. Foggy set me up with her.”

Claire was still in the kitchen nursing her beer, too sober to hear him talk about some girl whose name she didn’t even know. “Mm…Was she good? In bed?”

It took all his effort to sit up. “Claire, I know we aren’t on the best terms, but I think asking how another girl is in bed is crossing a line.” He soon heard her sit down beside him on the couch and put an open beer in his hands, he accepted it.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound like a jealous ex.” Her voiced softened and he took a drink of the beer. “And sorry I hung up on you the other day.”

The beer wasn’t great, but that wasn’t why you drank beer. “Have you had any problems with the break-in?” It was a much needed topic change.

“I got some more locks put on my doors…Bought a gun.” Claire said the last part hesitantly as if she was embarrassed or just wanted to keep that away from Matt.

Matt could only imagine what his reaction was to her buying a gun. “Do you know how to shoot it?” Not that he could help her, even he didn’t know how to shoot a gun. Even with his heightened senses it was probably best to keep the gun away from the blind guy. 

“Matt, I have in fact shot a gun before. Many times actually. My dad taught me before he died. Thought I should know to defend myself just in case something should happen.” Claire shrugged and took another drink from her beer. It was funny how little they really knew about each other. That there would always be things that the other doesn’t know about them. 

He took another drink from his beer, staying quiet for a moment. “I’m glad that you know how to defend yourself.” 

“Yeah, well, not all of us know karate and judo.” Claire smiled and nudge his shoulder with her own. They fell into an uncomfortable silence, Matt wasn’t sure where the line was, but figured that teasing each other was fine. 

There was something different about them since the wedding. Since Matt admitted his feelings. It was like they didn’t want the other to know how they really felt. Trying to hide it from the other even though it was obvious. Not wanting to cross a line and Matt wanting to respects Claire’s decision. 

“Maybe I shouldn’t come over as often.” He said hesitantly, unsure how Claire would react. They both knew that it was probably necessary; that maybe if they spent some time apart whatever Matt was feeling (what they both were) would go away. 

It didn’t surprise Claire as much as he thought it would. She nodded, understanding where he was coming from. “You’re probably right. Are you going to stop going out so much or go to an actual hospital?”

“I’m going to try to not end up in such bad of shape.” Matt smiled and stood up, putting his suit back on. “I should get going. Don’t want to keep you up too much.” 

She nodded in agreement and stood up with him before standing on her toes to kiss his forehead. “Be safe, okay?” 

The gesture took Matt aback, but he smiled and nodded. “Always am, Claire. You don’t need to worry about me.” Before he went back through her window, disappearing into the night.

\---

It had been weeks since the last time he had seen Claire. Daredevil was still making appearances, but he was more careful about which battles he picked just so he wouldn’t end up at her apartment. 

Foggy thought that it was a good idea, but he and Karen were both still suggesting that he should get back with Alice even if it was just casual. It might be good for him and it might take his mind off Claire more. He took their advice, going out with her after nights at the office and casual sex was fun. Not that he wasn’t thinking about Claire whenever he was with Alice, but it was fun all the same.

For some reason Foggy was at his apartment when he came back limping and looking like he was about to drop dead one night. When he saw the state that Matt was in he was immediately worried. “Dude, we’ve got to get you to the hospital.” 

Matt shook his head, he didn’t do hospitals. “Call…Claire.” And pulled out his burner to give to Foggy. “Tell her it’s Matt and to come…here.” He got out before laying on his couch with a grimace. 

Foggy listened to him and called Claire immediately. “She’s on her way.” It was easy to tell that he hated this, hated seeing Matt like this. That it practically killed him to see his best friend in so much pain. 

It was fifteen minutes later when Foggy let Claire in, who didn’t say anything to either of them, just got to work on patching Matt up. “He’s lost a lot of blood…” She mumbled mostly to himself. “Thought you told me you were gonna stay safe.”

Matt smiled faintly. “Thought I told you I was a contrary son of a bitch.” Which got a smile out of her. “Thank you, Foggy.” 

Foggy had been sitting on the chair, just watching the two of them with almost amusement. “Just glad that Claire was able to fix you.”

Claire looked back at him with her eyebrows raised. “You kidding me? I always fix him. Probably wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for me.” She stood up and threw away her gloves. “Alright. He’ll be fine, just make sure he doesn’t push himself.”

“Claire.” Matt whispered and she looked back him. “Thank you…I’m sorry.” 

“I know…me too.” She said before leaving.

Foggy grabbed a beer out of the fridge, laughing a bit. “Dude, you may have the most complicated love life ever. I don’t know how you do it.” 

Matt didn’t know how he did it either and honestly he wanted it to stop. “Claire’s right though. We need some time apart. We need to try to move on…or at least I need to try to move on. Which won’t be easy by any means, but all I can do is try.”

“Do whatever you think is best, buddy. I’m with you no matter what you decide to do.” He sat down next to Matt, placing the cold beer over one of Matt’s suture wounds which made him let out a hiss.

It was nice knowing that Foggy was on his side no matter what, no matter how hard it would be. “Alice is nice. I like her. And Claire has Mike. So, hopefully we’ll both be happy. That’s all I really want, you know? For both of us to be happy even if it isn’t with each other.”

Pinning over Claire didn’t seem like a good idea. Sure he still cared about her and probably always would, but for the time being it didn’t seem possible to be together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to apologize in advance for chapter 6 it's kind of filler and kind of boring. Chapter 7 will be much more dramatic, I promise!  
> Thank you for all the love, as always!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt tires to move on and Claire gets some bad news.

This time Matt was actually doing a fairly good job at not getting too badly injured. There were still cuts and bruises, but nothing that needed stitches or Claire’s attention. It was all part of the plan to try to move on and to let Claire move on; which was hard when he was always at her door. 

Daredevil still made appearances, but he tried not to over do it and it worked. Foggy and him were starting to get more clients, which was fun because now they had actual work to do. Sometimes he and Alice would go out for drinks and talk about lawyer things. He giving her a hard time because she was a prosecutor and he was a defense lawyer. They would still have casual sex and it worked. Matt never felt like she was pushing him to share, which was nice.

Still his thoughts would sometimes drift to Claire and wonder what she was doing. How the hospital was and if she was still seeing Mike. He wanted to call her just to see how she was, but that would mean not leaving her alone. So, Matt decided that she was probably doing just fine and getting an adequate amount of sleep. 

\---

“Come out with us tonight, Matt. We all need a break after this hellish week.” Karen said as she started to pack up her things for the night. It was Friday night and they were getting ready for court on Monday. The case didn’t seem like it would be too difficult to win, but there was also a lot of preparation to be put in place that stressed even him out the day before. “And with court on Monday we need to forget about law for a moment.”

Karen had a point and even though he was feeling drained maybe going out with Foggy and her would be fun. “Are we going to Josie’s?” 

“Of course.” 

They went straight to the dive-bar from the office, sitting at the bar as they all ordered. Foggy downed his whiskey in one drink. “Next week is going to suck. Even though the case is pretty much ready to go, court is always draining. You still seeing Alice, Matt?”

Matt sipped at his own whiskey before nodding. “Every once in awhile. Nothing…serious.”

Karen was supportive though, nodding and smiling enthusiastically. “Still, that’s just what you need to get your mind off of Claire. She’s a great lawyer too. She’s won almost all her cases.” When she noticed Foggy staring at her she just shrugged. “What? I googled her!”

Still, he appreciated Karen’s attitude and he couldn’t help but to smile. “Thank you, Karen. She seems like a great prosecutor from what I can tell. Yes, Foggy we talk about work a lot.” Matt could just sense that he was giving him a funny look.

“You guys need to talk about something other than work or it’s going to get boring.” Foggy said before waving Josie over for another whiskey.

“Then what do you and Marci talk about?” Matt deadpanned which shut Foggy up about that. “We talk about other things. It’s just that work happens to be something that comes up a lot since we’re both in the same field.”

They drank late into the night, Foggy kept waving the drinks on and it wasn’t like he had anywhere to be, so he stayed. Josie finally made them leave when it got close to three in the morning. Karen took a taxi back to her place, while Foggy said that he wasn’t letting Matt walk back alone.

“Just…just like the good ole days, dude!” Foggy exclaimed, throwing an arm around Matt’s neck. “The law school days. Where we thought we were going to change the world.”

It was the mind-sight almost every first year law student went through. Where they thought they would actually do some good in the law world, usually that went away during the second or third year. 

“Hey, we’re doing better than what we would be doing if we were at Landman and Zach’s.” Matt slurred as the usage of his cane also got sloppy. It was nice though being out with his friends, which he didn’t do as often since he was usually out kicking ass or getting his ass kicked. 

Foggy nodded and waited for Matt to unlock his apartment. “I know, but still. I almost miss law school. Almost.” He laughed and went straight to Matt’s couch. “Is it okay if I crash here, buddy? I don’t feel like going back to my place.”

Matt smiled. “You hardly studied and still graduated cum laude. And yeah, sure, just try not to make too much noise.”

Foggy pretended to be offended by that and covered his face with a pillow. “I hate that giant cherry blossom light…thing.” He mumbled. “You should invest in some curtains.”

“Why? I don’t see. I don’t need them.” Matt laughed as he stumbled to his bedroom, changing out of the suit he still had on from work and into a pair of sweatpants.

“Uh, because you sometimes have me over. Or women. And most of them time they can see.” His voice was muffled by the pillow, but it didn’t matter because soon he was asleep. 

It took Matt a little bit long to fall asleep; he just laid in bed as his mind raced. He thought about court on Monday and still needing to prepare. He thought about his friends and how they still needed to be protected, even if they didn’t realize it. How anyone who got close from him needed it – that he put everyone at a risk. Whenever he would think that his stomach would sink, but it just made him want to keep being Daredevil. 

He could never really stop. There would always be someone or a group of someone’s that would need to be taken down. He would always need to protect his city.

 ----------

Go figure that she would be scheduled working a double this weekend, the one weekend where Claire just wanted to drink wine and watch bad television. That was the way it always went though. 

For some reason the hospital was busy. Everyone seemed to be getting sick. Everyone from babies to teenagers to adults. There must’ve been something going around.

When she finally went on her break she poured herself a large amount of coffee, almost spilling it when someone started talking to her.

“I heard that you and Mike might be getting back together?” One of the other nurses asked in a far too peppy voice for Claire. She was new and was still excited by everything.

Claire took a drink before turning around to face her. “Um, I wouldn’t say we were getting back together, but we are…seeing each other more frequently than before.” 

The other girl wanted to know all the details, but really there weren’t any. It wasn’t anything exciting unless you count why they started seeing each other more. Then one of the older women, who has been here for even longer than her. “Temple, we’re going to need you to work over time.”

As if her night couldn’t have gotten any worse. “How the hell come?” Claire didn’t angry often, but when she was already going to work a double shift this was bullshit. 

“You just got two more patients.”

“Names?” Claire said, raising an eyebrow as she took another drink of her coffee. At this point a straight IV of caffeine would be best.

The woman looked down at a clipboard. “Franklin Nelson and Matthew Murdock.”

She dropped her coffee and the younger nurse yelped. “Did you say Murdock?”

“Yep. They’re both in surgery right now, so just take care of your other patients for right now. Someone will let you know when Nelson and Murdock are out of the OR.” And then she disappeared. 

Claire felt like she couldn’t breath; as if she was suffocating. For a moment it was like she was stuck in her own world, as if she couldn’t respond to anything or anyone. Finally she calmed down a little bit, enough to start cleaning up the coffee she had spilt. And then she had to go back to work, she had other patients to focus on and take care of. It was almost hard to focus, her stomach in knots about what happened and why the hell was Foggy in surgery? She would ask Matt once he was awake and alert. 

It was irrational she knew, but part of her was a little angry at Matt for putting his friends in danger. Especially when he was the one who was suppose to be protecting them. Matt told her he was going to be more careful. Anger and worry. Worry and anger. There were a thousand questions running through her head. 

Still, Claire had a job to do and it couldn’t be personal, so when she went into Matt’s room to write her name on the whiteboard she acted like she didn’t hear him say her name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is kinda just filler!  
> Thanks for the support <3


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt's in the hospital and Claire raises some questions.

The first thought Matt had was that everything hurt. Laying in the uncomfortable hospital bed hurt. Opening his eyes hurt. For a moment he forgot what even happened or where he was. Finally it all came back to him.

He and Foggy came back late from drinking, both of them were very drunk, and Matt must’ve forgot to lock his apartment. There was also the fact that he wasn’t aware enough to realize if anyone was following them. 

Someone had got in. It had to be someone that had a grudge against Daredevil. They got in and saw Foggy on the couch and shot him multiple times, by this point Matt was awake and aware. He dialed 911, but never got to say anything because then the guy who was wearing a mask shot him in the leg twice.

Once Matt was on the ground they came over to him and shot Matt in his chest at point-blank range. There was probably more, but he couldn’t remember it.

Matt figured that they had to fish the bullets out, give him a blood transfusion and stitch him back up. Either way he felt like utter shit. 

Then there was the fact that Claire was the nurse looking over him and she didn’t even react when he said her name. He could only imagine what was going through her head right now.

It was stupid to not be aware, to get shit-faced and not be able to fight back or protect Foggy. It was the second time someone had been hurt directly because of him. There was a pit in his stomach. All he wanted was to protect his city and he ended up getting two of the people he cares about most hurt. 

A doctor came in next, telling him what they did and how long he’d probably be in the hospital – a week. 

“Doctor, I have a trial on Monday. I have to be there. Mr. Nelson has to be there too.” Matt said, struggling to sit up until the doctor moved his bed for him. 

The doctor shook his head. “I’m sorry, Mr. Murdock, but we have to make sure everything went okay in surgery. We will call your client and anyone else we need to if you give us the numbers.”

All he did was nod and close his eyes. “How is Mr. Nelson doing?” That was what he was most concerned with; how Foggy was doing.

“He’s doing fine. He woke up about half an hour ago. He’ll probably be in here a week as well, but his injuries were nothing compared to yours. We almost thought we lost you.” The doctor said his goodbyes and Matt just stared at the wall in shock.

He almost died. It was the first time he truly realized the danger he was in by being Daredevil. This was different than just having Claire patch him back up. 

Of course he wouldn’t, he couldn’t, stop being Daredevil, but it definitely put things in perspective. 

It was a few hours later when Claire came back in to take note of his vitals and to give him morphine. Matt had been napping, but woke up when he heard the door open. “Claire…” He said, his voice raspy, needing something to drink.

This time she didn’t ignore him. “Glad to see that you’re alive.”

Matt sighed, were they really going to do this now? And here of all places? “Sit…please.”

Once she finished putting the morphine into his IV, she turned around to head back towards the door. “I have a job to do, Matt. I can’t sit here and talk about how big of an idiot you are. How you almost got your best friend killed. How you almost got yourself killed.” And then left.

\---

It was late when someone came into his room waking him from sleep. “It’s just me.” A familiar voice said and she pulled up a chair. “My shift is over. I’ll be back in the morning, but you wanted to talk.”

Matt rubbed his eyes, trying to wake up. “Claire…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for this-“

“You didn’t mean for this to happen? No shit, Matt. But how could you let this happen?” Claire was frustrated.

He sighed, nodding. “I didn’t mean for you to get kidnapped, I didn’t mean for Foggy to end up here, I didn’t mean to almost die. I’m just trying to make my city a better place.”

Claire nodded, she knew that already. It was something that Matt said often. “I know you were drunk, but you don’t think that there’s people out there who want to hurt you? Who’d love to see you dead?”

“I know that. I just…I thought I could let go for one night and it’d be fine.” He smiled sadly, and put his head back against the bed. It was tiring feeling like you had to do everything you could to protect a city. The weight of the world was one Matt’s shoulders. “I have to do this. I have to do everything in my power to keep Hell’s Kitchen safe.”

Claire was exhausted too. Worrying and taking care of the man she cared for deeply and his best friend would do that to you. “Matt, doing this sort of thing comes at a cost. Your health, your friends, your safety…”

Matt knew the dangers of being Daredevil, now more than ever. “I’m tired. I want…need to do this, but god it’s draining. And it landed me here almost dead.”

“You have to decide if it’s worth it, Matt. Is it worth it to have to look over your shoulder all the time?” Claire started to get up before Matt pulled her back down.

“What do you think I should do?”

Claire shook her head. “I can’t make that decision for you. It’s up to you what you do once you leave here.”

That answer frustrated Matt. “No, you don’t want to be responsible for what I do next.”

She had been about to leave, but now she turned back around her teeth gritting together. “You’re damn right. I’m not going to end up with blood on my hands. I’m not going to watch you become Daredevil again and put your friends at risk.”

“Then who is going to protect them? The law?”

Claire threw her hands up in the air. “You’re helping people by being a lawyer, but no you have to become a vigilante. You don’t have to do it all, Matt.”

“I know I don’t, but I have to try.” There had to be a reason he got these heightened senses and he was trying to do some good with it.

It always came back to that. He had to try to make his city a better place. He had to try to do it all. Claire sighed and shook her head, not understanding why he was so hell-bent on that. “I guess so, Matt. But what’s going to happen if you fail?” And then she left.

Failure was not an option. Unless by fail she meant him dying, which made him pause and think. Was dying worth it? Matt knew that Foggy would say no. But he couldn’t sit back and do nothing.

Being Daredevil was getting more complicated as Claire kept asking important questions. As he laid in the hospital bed from almost dying. He never thought it would become this complicated. It always seemed pretty straight forward.

If he kept being Daredevil then it meant that he was putting himself, Foggy, Karen, Claire, and anyone else he cared about in danger. Matt just had to figure out if it was a risk worth taking.

\---

Finally, he and Foggy were released from the hospital. Both of them were still in pain and their bodies hurt, but it would be nice to go back to their own apartments. When they saw each other as they were being released they immediately hugged each other tightly. 

“I’m glad you’re okay, Foggy.” Matt finally said once they moved apart. “I’m sorry. This is my fault. I should’ve been able to protect you.”

Foggy wasn’t mad, which surprised Matt. “Dude, it’s okay. You can’t protect everyone all the time.” 

Matt nodded and hugged him again. “Still, I’m sorry.” They said their goodbyes as Foggy left and Matt asked the desk if he could talk to Claire. He had to wait for a little bit before she finally came out. “Claire.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “What is it, Matt?”

“I just wanted to say thank you before I left.” Matt stood up and walked a little closer.

“You’re welcome. I hope you start to feel better and that you actually take some time to rest.” Claire smiled and was about to turn back before Matt kissed her forehead, she was going to say something but decided against it, then left to go back to work.

It has hard being Daredevil and watching the people you love get hurt. It was something he hadn’t thought about in the early days, the days before he got involved in big criminals and people like Fisk. But he couldn’t stop, not now, not when he knows all the horrible things that are out there. 

Could he be Daredevil and not worry about the people he loves getting killed because of him? It didn’t seem possible. It seemed like he’d always be worried about them. That there would always be danger out there, whether he was Daredevil or not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, hope you enjoyed this chapter! Just wanted to let you know that there are probably only three chapters left (so ten chapters in total).  
> Thank you so much for the support!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt and Claire have a talk.

The same thought had been running through his head for the past few days. The thought he had as he left the hospital. Could he be Daredevil and not worry about the people he loves getting killed because of him. Even when they were at trial he had been thinking about it. It was something that he needed to talk about, but he wasn’t sure if he could talk about it to Foggy since he wasn’t the best with the Daredevil stuff. 

At trial on Friday they gave their closing arguments, it was only a matter of time before the jury made a decision. So for now they would just wait. Matt went back to his apartment as Karen and Foggy went to Josie’s. He found himself calling Claire.

“Hullo?” It didn’t sound like she had been sleeping or like she had been working, so maybe it was her day off. “Matt, what is it?”

Matt took a moment to gather himself. “I just really need someone to talk to. Can you come over?” 

Claire had said yes and she was on her way. He unlocked the door in advanced and sat down on the couch, thinking about what he wanted to say. She didn’t even knock, just walked on in like she knew that it was going to be unlocked, and sat down beside him. 

They stayed like that for a while; just sitting there in silence before Matt finally spoke. “I don’t know what to do…” He shook his head.

“What do you mean?” Even though Claire was pretty sure what he had meant.

“I need to be Daredevil, but I put everyone I love at risk. Foggy almost died…you got kidnapped. It only a matter of time before something happens to Karen. I don’t know what to do.” Matt repeated and took his glasses off to set them on the table. 

She nodded and thought about her own answer. “I can’t tell you what to do, Matt. I think at this point you’d be putting the people you love at risk even if you stopped being Daredevil. You won’t stop, we both know that, so let’s not even act like that’s an option.” 

Matt knew she was right on all counts. There were probably people who could link him to Karen and Foggy still. There was also no way he would stop being Daredevil, even if he toyed with the idea. “I just want people to stop getting hurt because of me.”

“It’s too late for that…that’s going to happen no matter what you do.” Claire knew he wouldn’t like that answer even if it was the truth. 

“I never thought that it would become this complicated.” He rubbed his temple and sighed before turning his head like he would be looking at her. “I didn’t think that I would put anyone who was close to me at risk. Hell, Daredevil just blew up once everything with Fisk started happening.”

Claire nodded and brushed hair out of his face, finger tips tracing along his jaw. “I’m sure Foggy and Karen will still want to be your friend.” She said with a grin.

Matt smiled and closed his eyes, head tipping down as she traced his jaw. “And what about you?”

Her fingers stopped and he could tell that she wasn’t smiling anymore. “I’m still here. It’s getting harder and harder to stay away…to not get involved, you know?” Somehow Matt ended up on her couch and she took care of him, even when it was in the hospital. 

“I’m sorry. I know how much you want to stay out of it.” He was sorry, but he tried to not go to her unless it was necessary. Besides, Claire was starting to become like his rock. Her advice was always the best and she told him what he needed - not what he wanted - to hear. She wasn’t always there for him, but when she was it was worth it. 

Claire shook her head. “It isn’t your fault, Matt. I keep getting involved on my own accord. Starting think I actually like the danger.” She laughed even though it wasn’t actually that funny, more ironic than anything. “Or maybe it’s just you.”

Matt smiled, her heartbeat said that she was the telling the truth but he wasn’t sure if it was actually true. “I’m sure you just love patching up all the vigilantes that come to your door.”

“I’m very popular among vigilantes. I know, you’re shocked that you aren’t the only one.” Claire leaned in a little closer, the grin spreading a little more.

For a moment he just sat there before sighing, “Claire…” and leaning in a little closer himself. Matt waited for Claire to stop him, to get up or to say something. To do something so he would stop himself, because god he wanted to kiss her more than anything. 

“This doesn’t change anything.” Claire whispered before finally closing the gap between them. His hands cupping her face and it was even better than the first kiss. Her teeth grazing his lip as he pulled her closer, Claire was practically in his lap. When they separated she smiled and rested her forehead against his. “I just really wanted to kiss you again. Have for a while now.”

Matt smiled and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. “Me too. Don’t worry this doesn’t mean anything more than the other kiss did.” He wished that it did, but he knew that Claire didn’t want it to. That she wasn’t ready and still wanted some distance from Daredevil. 

Claire moved away a bit, still close but not close enough that they were breathing each other’s air. “I want to, but I can’t. I don’t want to be like Foggy. I don’t want people try to kill me.”

“It’s already happened before, Claire. And like you said it’s too late…that it doesn’t matter what I do now.” He shrugged, not wanting to sound like he was trying to throw her words back in her face.

“I know, I did say that, but…” She shook her head, giving a small laugh. “I’m scared, Matt. I’m scared something’s going to happen to you…to me. I’m scared, because this is out of my control and some of it is even out of your control.”

Matt nodded, he understood why she didn’t want to get involved it wasn’t something she had to explain to him. What he didn’t know was how scared she really was. “Claire, a lot of things in life are out of our control.”

“I know that, but most of those things don’t have to do with the person you care about being a vigilante.” She said it in a lighthearted manner before getting serious again. “I just want to feel like I can control some aspects of my life.”

“You can. No matter what you do it will be because you decided on it. You will always have control of your life.” Matt said as he reached for her hand to give it a squeeze. 

Claire nodded and smiled as he squeezed her hand, bringing it up to her face to give it a kiss. “You’re right, that’s true, but for right now I’m not ready. That’s not to say that I won’t be ready next month, next week, or even tomorrow. But today? I’m not ready.” She stood up to leave, heading for the door.

“You know where to find me when you are.” Matt said with a smile and she turned around to return it. 

It was clear that they couldn’t stay away from each other, that cared about each other far too much to act like that would do any good. Sure, they could try to move on with casual dates and sex, but they both knew that in the back of their minds they weren’t going to move on. That they didn’t want to. 

It was a weird in-between state that they were in where they knew they liked and cared for each other, but they weren’t together. All they could do was wait until the time was right, until Claire is comfortable enough with being together. 

\---

When Matt went into the office the next day Foggy just kind of stared at him with a funny look on his face. “You sure do look happy for a guy that was almost murdered a week ago.”

Matt laughed, setting his briefcase down on his desk. “You know…things seem kind of better now.” 

“Oh really?” Foggy raised an eyebrow. “What happened? It was Claire wasn’t it?”

Funny how Matt was the one who supposedly knew these sort of things when Foggy and Claire were getting good at predicating him. “Kind of. I don’t know, things just seem good today.”

Foggy didn’t question him anymore than that. “It’s good to see you happy, dude.”

When Claire went into the hospital even her fellow nurses knew that something was up, that she looked happier than usual. Not that she gave them an answer, told them even less than what Matt told Foggy. 

Either way things were starting to look up for both of them

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 8 is here which means there are only TWO chapters left after this.  
> I can't believe this story is almost done, but do not fear I'm going to write a new Matt/Claire series! Not entirely sure what it's going to be, but I'm working on it!  
> Thank you so much for the love!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt stops by Claire's after he gets injured and things get a little heated.

They had been home from the hospital for a few weeks now and things were falling back into place. When they had showed up at the office that next day Karen gave them both huge hugs and talked about how they needed to be more careful, but also that she was glad they were okay. Matt and Foggy were just glad that Karen wasn’t involved.

“So, what exactly happened?” Foggy asked as they were reviewing a case, throwing balls of paper into a trash can. Each time they trashed an argument Foggy had to try to make it in the trash can. He wasn’t very good at it for the most part.

Matt was using listening to audio of the case, Foggy had recorded it for him to make it easier. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” It was obvious what Foggy meant, but he wasn’t super interested in talking about it.

Foggy scoffed and threw another paper wad, watched it miss the waste basket. “You know what I’m talking ‘bout. With Claire! You never told me what exactly happened.”

His love life had never really been private from Foggy, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing and Matt never really minded telling Foggy. But this was different. They weren’t in college hooking up, especially since something really could develop between him and Claire. “Let’s just say something might happen.” Then went back to listening to the case.

“Whatever, Mr. Secrets.” He sat back down to try to help Matt come up with some more compelling arguments. 

It wasn’t that Matt wanted to keep stuff from Foggy or didn’t want to tell him, but he wanted a little bit of privacy with something like a relationship. If anything really did develop he would of course tell his best friend, but for now he was going to keep his mouth shut. 

There was also the fact that it was complicated. Claire wasn’t sure what she wanted to do just yet and they were kind of in this relationship limbo. They both liked the other, cared for the other, but there was no label on them just yet. 

\-----

Daredevil started making appearances, to much joy of the media, only after a few days of being home. It was a part of Matt and it was hard to stay away from it. There was a thrill and a joy that he had when he put on the suit. He knew he should be more careful and probably should’ve taken a longer break, but it wasn’t possible. Besides he wasn’t called Daredevil for nothing, right?

It took a little bit of getting used to as he started going back out, more like riding a bike than playing the piano, but still took some getting used it. After his first time back out he had it under control and was back to his old Daredevil ways. Of course that came with getting injured and finding himself at Claire’s door…or window.

She scoffed as she let him in, going to get her med kit as Matt laid down on her couch. “Thought you’d actually start being careful.”

Luckily it wasn’t anything too bad, just some cuts that needed to be stitched up. “And why would you think that?” Honestly Matt thought that he’d be more careful too, but it wasn’t really possible.

“Because you almost died.” Claire deadpanned, not joking around as she knelt beside him to patch him back up, clearly not happy to see him under these circumstances.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I remember, but I couldn’t just stop…The injuries are part of the job. It was only a matter time before I ended up back on this couch. You should be happy it wasn’t sooner.”

Claire shook her head and stopped in the middle of a suture. “Be happy you didn’t end up here sooner? Matt, I’d be happy if you never ended up here again.” There was a heavy silence. “I mean injured. I am happy to see you, just…not like this.” Then went back to her suture. 

“I know, I’d be happy too if I never needed you to patch me back up, but that’s not really possible. Besides, I like being here.” A slow grin spreading across his face. 

It took some self-control to hold back from rolling her eyes at him. “Yeah, charm is the only way you’re gonna get me to forgive you.”

His heartbeat sped up. It was like a game now, or at least it felt like one. “I’m sure I could think of some other ways to get you to forgive me.” Matt smirked and listened to her heartbeat, trying to sense what she was feeling. 

Claire finally realized what he meant and that was when her heart started to pick up pace. Her hands were shaking just enough for Matt to notice and he laughed. “You think you’re funny?”

“Hm?” He said, wiping the smirk from his face. “I’m just having a little fun, Claire. Besides, if I really do need your forgiveness…” 

Once she had stitched up all the wounds that looked deep enough she looked up at him with an eyebrow raised. “You tellin’ me that a blind guy knows how to go down on a girl?”

“I have had sex before, Claire. I do know a thing or two about it.” College had been fun that way. Girls were eager to teach him since he couldn’t really see how it was done. 

Claire sighed, she should’ve know, and stood up. “I’m making coffee, you want some?” He told her yes and she went into the kitchen while he stayed on the couch waiting. “So, were you joking or being serious?”

As she came back she put a mug into his hands and he took a long sip. “About what?” 

“Everything.” Claire muttered, sitting down next to him on the couch.

He nodded and took another drink. “Of course. I mean, I was mostly kidding about going down on you, but…it can be serious if you want it to be.”

“Maybe we should save that for a time where you aren’t in pain and under different circumstances.” Claire said before taking a drink from her mug. “Because I want to, but not when I just had blood on my hands and you were bleeding.”

Matt understood and would rather it be that way too, he turned his head so it was like he was looking at her and cupped her face with his free hand. “I know, I’d rather have it that way too.”

She put her mug down on a side table then did the same with Matt’s before straddling his lap. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to try anything.” 

Both of his hands cupped her face before kissing her. At first he was slow and deliberate, but as Claire got more into it the kiss evolved into something a bit faster. He pulled her against his chest and made a noise as she bit his lip. She tilted her head a bit more before going back to kissing him, arms wrapped around his neck.

Matt’s hands moved underneath her shirt, fingers ghosting above her stomach and then to the back of her bra. “Should I?” He mumbled as he broke from the kiss, instead going to kiss her neck and whatever of her collarbone he could find.

Claire’s heart felt like it was in her throat as she nodded. “You can, but I don’t want to go all the way. Not yet.” 

He didn’t undo her bra and his hands went to her waist instead, still kissing up her neck and sucking just a bit but not enough to leave a mark. 

“You’re forgiven, by the way, of coming here injured.” Claire said as she tilted her neck back and she could feel him smile against her skin. 

They did that for a while, just kissed and acted like teenagers without taking their clothes off. It was fun and something that Matt hadn’t done in a long time. Sure, he had had sex, but not just kissing and laughing as they teased each other. It felt like something that he could only do with Claire. They both knew that this didn’t change a thing; that it was like friends-with-benefits only without the sex. Matt knew that Claire’s fears wouldn’t go away overnight and that was fine, they had lots of time anyways. If Claire decided she didn’t want things to go any further then they would stop, simple as that. 

By then it was late in the early morning and both of them had work tomorrow. Claire got up from Matt’s lap to put the coffee mugs in the sink, saving the dirty dishes for a different day. “I’m gonna get about four hours of sleep now thanks to you.”

Matt was putting the Daredevil suit back on and gave an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, Claire.”

“I’m not.” She came over to him and kissed him again, long and slow. “Yeah, definitely not sorry.” She said as she moved away.

“If it makes you feel better I’m probably only going to get a few hours of sleep too. I don’t regret it though.” Matt kissed her forehead. “I’ll see you later.” Then disappeared out of her window. 

Claire watched him disappear into the darkness before closing the curtains. “Yeah, you better.” She mumbled to herself before going to bed with a smile.

When Matt got back to his apartment he took a shower and changed into a pair of sweatpants before climbing into bed. Even though he would be exhausted tomorrow at the office, he didn’t regret a thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy only one chapter left! I just finished writing it today and it's the longest chapter yet at over 2.3k words. It has a sort of epilogue feel to it and it's definitely happy.  
> So I know I told you guys I'd post what the next Matt/Claire series I'm working on was going to be about, but I tried writing some of it and I just couldn't do it. I will be writing a new Matt/Claire series but I /dont/ know what it's going to be about yet. Just keep checking the Matt/Claire ao3 tag or my tumblr!  
> Thanks for all the love <3


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ending/Epilogue

“So, are you two together then?” Foggy asked after Matt told him what was going on with Claire. It was a complicated question, because neither Matt or Claire had labeled…whatever they were. Even if it was probably better that way.

He shrugged and took a drink from his coffee. “I don’t really know. It’s more of a wait-and-see situation.” It had been a few weeks and they had seen each other a few times, mostly when Matt stopped in to get patched up. He would always stay a little longer and they would tease each other and their hands would linger near the others. A lot of the time Matt didn’t want to go back to his apartment, would love it if he could just lay next to her, but he always went back to his place.

Foggy raised an eyebrow and lifted some Thai noodles into his mouth. “So, have you guys slept together yet?” 

The question made him laugh and just shook his head. “No, we haven’t. Not that it isn’t any of your business.” And just like that his burner rang. “Uh, hi, Claire. Is everything okay?”

When Karen heard him talk on the phone, she peaked into the office. “Who’s he talking to?” She asked Foggy.

“His girlfriend.” He said as if it was the most casual thing in the world. 

“She is not my girlfriend.” Matt said and at the same time Claire was saying _girlfriend?!_ “No, that was Foggy thinking he was funny. No, I never said that you were, I promise.” Which made Foggy laugh. “Tonight? Yes, I can come over tonight. No, no, I won’t be needing the first aid kit. Sounds good.” When he hung up he could feel Karen and Foggy’s eyes on him. “What?”

Karen disappeared out of the office before Foggy chuckled. “Well, it sounds like you guys might be sleeping together tonight. What did you she call about anyways?”

“Oh, she wanted to invite me over…drink beer and just talk, since usually I’m bleeding when we see each other. It’ll be a little normal now.” Matt shrugged and downplayed it, as if he wasn’t excited to get off work now. 

\---

They had hardly spent time together if you don’t count whenever he went to her apartment for her to patch him up. They knew just enough about each other. It would be good for them to spend more time together to see if this was something worth pursuing. Matt knew that it was worth it to him, knew that he needed Claire in his life. It was just the matter if Claire needed Matt. 

When Matt came to her apartment it was by the front door and he was still wearing his slacks and button-down shirt, he had came straight from the office. Claire opened the door with a smile and a quiet laugh. “Well, well, well…aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” Then moved out of the way for him to come in. “It’s nice to see you not covered in blood.”

He grinned, nodding in agreement, before sitting down on the couch (it was a habit). “I agree. It’s also nice to not show up in the Daredevil suit.”

Claire went into the kitchen and grabbed two beers before sitting down next to him, pushing one of the bottles into his hand. “Only now I don’t have an excuse to see you shirtless.”

It was nice how easily they felt around each other, how they immediately started teasing each other. “I mean, I can take my shirt off if you really want me to.”

They fell into a comfortable silence before Claire finally broke it. “How did it happen? I mean, how do you become blind and then become a vigilante?”

Matt sighed, taking a long drink of the beer. “It didn’t happen overnight. When my dad was killed I went into an orphanage and then another blind man…old guy found me. He taught me how to fight, how to use my heightened senses.” He paused, frowning, remember the first time he actually went out. “Then, I heard this dad go into his daughter’s room each night…I couldn’t let that happen, so I went out. I found him and beat him bloody. Guess it just kind of snowballed from there.” He could tell that Claire was in shock, trying to process what he just said. 

“It’s kind of a curse, isn’t it?” She asked before taking a drink and moving a little closer to Matt. “The heightened senses?”

He nodded slowly. “A little bit. You hear everything…I hear people in pain and distress all the time. It’s hard to pick which people you help and then you feel overwhelming guilt.” It was something that no one knew. The guilt that came with being Daredevil, but he figured that Claire knew since she was nurse. At least she would be able to relate.

Her free hand found his free hand and intertwined their fingers together. “I understand. I can’t imagine what it’s like to hear all the pain and not be able to help them.” 

“Hey, let’s not talk about the bad, okay? There’s the fact that I know when a client is lying or not. I’m good at card games, because I can tell if someone is bluffing or not.” Matt grinned and brought her hand up to his mouth to kiss.

She laughed and pushed his shoulder. “I bet you’re real fun to play cards with.” 

Matt talked about the other ways his heightened senses are good. How it’s just like being really good at reading people, he just can’t see them. He talked about law school and meeting Foggy, how they interned for Landman and Zach’s and how it kind of sucked. “I love being a defense attorney. At Landman and Zach’s it would be this huge corporation…it definitely wouldn’t be as rewarding.”

It was then Claire’s time to talk and she curled up closer to Matt, laying her head against his chest. She talked about her dad, how she misses him all the time and visits his grave more often than she should. But also that her family is even closer now and she really likes that. How she wanted to help people since she was little and nursing school was practically hell. “It was worth it though. I love my job. Wouldn’t change it for the world.”

“It was kind of because of your job we met. I mean, if you weren’t a nurse you wouldn’t have gotten me out of that dumpster and then we definitely wouldn’t be here.” Matt smiled and kissed the top of her head. 

Claire hummed it agreement before sitting back up. “Thank god I pulled you out of that dumpster.” Then laughed and grabbed the empty beer bottles to throw them away and to grab new ones. Once she had the two new bottles and handed one to Matt. “And thank god that you aren’t as good of a fighter as you say you are.” She teased, giving him a look as she took a drink. 

It was one of the most frequented topics of their teasing; Matt getting beat up all the time. “It’s only because as I get more confident, I go after better fighters.” He knew he didn’t need to defend himself, but brought it up anyways.

“Maybe you need to start to get better.” She mumbled as she brushed his hair away from his face and he leaned into her touch. “Maybe a haircut too.” 

He chuckled and took his glasses off, putting them on the side table. “I never know when I need to get a haircut and Foggy definitely doesn’t tell me.”

“Isn’t that what I’m here for? Your voice of reason, to patch you up, and to tell you when you need haircuts?” Claire leaned back against the couch, smirking, bringing the beer bottle back up to her lips. 

“Sounds about right.” 

\---

“I can’t do this, Foggy.” Matt said as he wiped his palms on his pants, his heart feeling like it would actually beat out of his chest. There wasn’t a time where he had been this nervous before. Never in court or interviewing for Landman and Zach’s. Not even when he revealed his feelings to Claire the first time. 

Foggy put his hands on both of Matt’s shoulders, looking him straight in the eye. “Dude, you got this, you have no reason to be nervous. You’re gonna do great.” He smiled before pulling him into a hug. 

Matt left the office a little earlier than usual and stopped by Claire’s apartment. “Claire, hello, I was wondering if you were busy?”

She was definitely surprised to see him there and it looked like she had just been sleeping, must’ve just got done with a double shift. “Uh, no, I’m free. You want to come in?” 

“No, I was wondering if you wanted to go for a walk? We could stop by that ice cream place you love?” There was an old-school ice cream shop a little bit out of Hell’s Kitchen that Claire loved; would tell him stories of how her dad took her and her brothers there. That they have the best milkshakes in all of New York City. Matt had never been there, but he figured Claire would be more likely to join him if he mentioned ice cream.

Her interest was peaked and she nodded her head. “Yeah, I’d love to. Just…give me a minute to change. I’m still in my srubs.” For a few minutes Matt waited outside her door for her to come back out. “Alright, let’s go. God, you’ve never been there have you? You’ll have to have a chocolate milkshake, it’s the best I’ve ever had.” 

They talked on the way there about how it was getting close to what they considered their year anniversary. Some could argue they had been together for longer than that, but the year was the official date. They talked about Daredevil and Claire’s fears. 

“I’m definitely more comfortable, that’s for sure, but I think that fear of me…of you dying is always going to be there.” Claire shrugged and he nodded, accepting the answer. 

“You’re allowed to stop this at any point, you know that, right?” Matt reached for her hand, intertwining their fingers. 

Claire gave his hand a squeeze. “I know, but right now I’m pretty happy.”

It was only a few minutes later when they entered the ice cream shop, taking a seat at the bar as they ordered their milkshakes. Matt got his first and he had to admit that it was pretty good. “Wonder what’s taking so long for yours?” He asked as it had been a while since they ordered and Claire still didn’t have hers.

“Hey, you can’t rush perfection.” She quipped as she stole the cherry from Matt’s milkshake, popping it in her mouth. Finally hers came out, but there was no cherry on top. Instead it looked like it was a ring. “What is-?” Claire started to ask as she pulled it from the chocolate. 

Now Matt’s heart was in his throat as he knelt down by her chair, holding her hand that held the ring. “Claire Temple…” He started, smiling a bit. “You are by far the most amazing woman I have ever met. I know that our relationship isn’t technically normal, but it works and we work. And I would be honored if you married me.” 

Claire was speechless and Matt was worried that she’d say no, but she nodded her head. “Yes. Yes, of course.” Matt grinned and stood up, hands cradling her face as he kissed her. “Am I going to have to put it on myself?” She asked, quirking an eyebrow.

He shook his head, fumbling a bit before finally sliding the ringer on her finger. “I had Karen help me pick it out, I hope you like.” The ring was overly flashy, just a nice sized diamond in the middle with a silver band.

“I love it. I love you.” She said before kissing him again.

\---

Her hands settled for around his neck and his moved to her waist, lightly moving with the music. “So, how does it feel to be Claire Murdock?” Matt asked as their first dance finally ended.

Claire scoffed and shook her head. “I’m not taking your name Matt.” They had already talked about that and it was fine with Matt, she knew he was kidding.

“Okay, but how does it feel to be Mrs. Daredevil.” He laughed and she just shook her head before putting her forehead against his shoulder. “Remember when we danced at your brother’s wedding? Did you ever think that someday that would be us?”

“Not in a million years.” Claire said as she looked up at him, kissing his jaw. “Honestly, I’m having a hard time believing that even this is real.”

When they were planning the wedding Matt said that she was still allowed to leave if it ever became too much. If she couldn’t deal with him being Daredevil and the dangers that came with it. The offer still stood even as they danced as man and wife. They still had their separate apartments and would probably keep it that way, so Claire could be alone if she needed to be. Though as of recently they had been staying together at Matt’s place.

“I didn’t either.” Matt admitted, laughing a little bit. “That seems so long ago.” The past few years had gone by way too quickly for the both of them. Claire was working at new hospital with better pay and Nelson and Murdock was getting a steady flow of clientele. It was an exciting time for both of them.

Claire kissed him, standing up on her toes even in heels, and people aww’ed around them. “Guess this was something that neither of us saw coming.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for supporting this fic, I honestly can't say it enough. I never thought I'd write over 17k words of this. It was much fun and I loved writing every chapter. I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> I finally have come up with an idea for my next Matt/Claire series. It's an apocalyptic au (think Walking Dead) and Matt and Claire team up to survive. I don't know when I'll start writing it or post it, but keep an eye out for it!
> 
> Thank you again <3


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